Just witnessed your best live gig?.. send us a review!

STING Manchester Apollo, 16 March 2012

Having caught the Police live on their last UK tour I was looking forward to watching Sting solo and wondering if he could do all the old hits with a new band and make them work, and that he did...

Sting who was once named one of the coolest men in British rock music is currently on his "Back To Bass" tour and tonight Manchester Apollo was a full house, Sting and his 5 piece band were on top form and played a two hour set drawing equally from both his solo work, and his back catalogue with The Police.

There were new live arrangements of "Next To You," "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" and "Every Breath You Take," and Sting and his band were nothing short of amazing.

Fiddle player Peter Tickell was on top form and played a couple of great solos, and copied the soprano sax parts on songs like "Fortress Around Your Heart" perfectly (with help from Jo Lawry on violin and backing vocals).

Add the father-son guitar duo of Dominic and Rufus Miller along with supremo drummer Vinnie Colaiuta (a veteran of Jeff Beck's band), who had Stewart Copeland's drumming on Police songs down to a tee.

To me Sting does not get the credit he deserves both as a singer-songwriter and performer, the man has a back catalogue to die for and tonight he was showing no signs of his age on vocals, the fit-looking 60-year-old hitting all the high notes pitch perfect.

The crowd had come to here all the hits and that's just what they got.  Coming out of the venue I overheard two female punters agreeing that Sting though 60 was still a sex symbol and better than all the so called crap in the charts today...praise indeed for the man who was once painted head to foot by a tribe from the rainforest.


Review and photos by Steve Goudie

Photo Gallery

You can use the direction keys on your keyboard to navigate easily through the photo gallery